Ruffle folder



March 12, 1946.. P, KRAUSS 2,396,376

RUFFLE FOLDER Filed 'March' e, 1944- 2 'sheets-sheet 2 l f M.

{mmm'li' i f INVENTOA PH/LL/P KRHL/ss Patented Mar. 12, 1946 UNITEDSTATES RUFFLE FOLDER Phillip Krauss, Memphis, Tenn., assignor to RobertVan Cleelf and Samuel J. Behr, a partnership doing business as TheFashion Curtain Company, Memphis, Tenn.

Application March 6, 1944, Serial No. 525,161 1 Claim'. (Cl. i12-147)This invention relates to improvements in folding and guiding devices,such as are used in the folding of edge portions of ruiiles in makingcurtains, and the subsequent guiding of these edge portions to place andholding them in proper position during the stitching of the ruiiie tothe edge of the curtain body.

In attaching ruiiles to dresses, or more extensively, the attaching ofruiiles to the edge portions of curtains, guides, usually known asfolders, have been developed which for purposes of distinction may bedesignated as body folders which turn in and guide an edge portion ofthe body of the curtain, and an additional guide or ruiile folder whichturns in and guides the edge portion of the ruflie which is to beattached to the curtain, these two folders being set up in overlyingrelation so that the edges of the body and of the ruilie may be broughtinto proper juxtaposition and the ruiiie then tucked or gathered as itis fed to a stitching or sewing machine and the two parts securedtogether.

It has long been known to hem the edges of the ruflie and to fold andguide one of these hemmed edges into position, the stiffening of theruiiie edge byV hemming making it comparatively easy to accomplish theguiding and feeding of the rutile edge after it has left the ruiiiefolder and is being engaged by the tucker.

There has, however, been developed a ruie in which an unhemmed edge isfolded back on the ungathered ruflie strip, and, without stitching, thisloosely disposed and flimsy edge is assembled over the edge of the bodyportion and after being gathered by the tucker is stitched to thefolded- 1 in raw edge of the body portion in such manner that the tworaw edges lie between the lines of stitching and an edge portion of therutile projects from the stitching oppositely to the much wider portionof the ruffle proper, such ruiiie finish and attachment to the body edgeof the material being shown in the patent to Wright, No. 2,246,197,issued June 17, 1941.

In this type of ruffle, folding of the body edge is readily performed bywell known devices, and with such the present invention is notconcerned.

Folding and guiding of the attaching edge of the ruffle shown in thispatent, however, proved in commercial manufacture to be extremelydifiicult and much time, thought, and experimentation were given beforeaccomplishment of this apparently simple problem was solved.

The primary object of the present invention is:

To provide a folder which will maintain and guide the loose andextremely flimsy edge poris effected.

The means by which the foregoing and other objects are accomplished, andthe manner of their accomplishment, will readily be understood from thefollowngrspecication upon reference 16 to the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a fragmentary portion of the head end ofa double needle type of sewing machine through which ruiile attachmentto the curtain edge is effected, with my improved folder in workingattachment thereto.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the folder.

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the front or feed-in side.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation looking in the direction of the arrow IV ofFig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional side elevation taken on the line V--V of Fig. 2;and

Fig. 6 is a section on the line VI--VI of Fig. 2.

.Referring now to the drawings in which the various parts are indicatedby numerals:

Il is part of the head of a sewing or stitching machine, I3 the presserfoot, l5 the throat plate, l1 a pair of needles which are carried by theusual needle holder l 9 and reciprocated by mechanism within the head,the needles passing in usual mannerthrough the presser foot and throatplate.

2| is a tucker or gatherer bar which is reciprocated, in entirely usualmanner, by an arm 23, the movement of which arm is coordinated with theneedle movement. The end 2IA of .the tucker bar is corrugated andoverlies a tucker plate 25, and when the bar is reciprocated by the arm23, the corrugated end engages and advances interposed material with astep by step movement. The ruille overlies the plate 25, and the bodymaterial to which it is to be attached underlies the same plate, thetucker bar engaging and pushing the edge of the rule past the end of theplate 25 and against the underlying body material in immediate proximityto the presser foot I3, from which point other portions of the machinefeed mechanism take over and move the two pieces jointly into positionwhere they 55 are stitched by action of. the needles l1. The

edge 21 of the body material 29, Fig. 2, is folded over and guided as itis approached toward the presser foot I3 by attachments, which form nopart of the present invention and are, therefore, not shown.

Depending from the head is a support 3|, to which the instant rufflefolder, generally indicated by the. numeral 33, is attached, attachmentbeing effected by a' U clip` 35, integrally attached to the folder,which clip embraces the support 3| and is clamped thereto by a set screw31. The support 3| includes an inwardly extend- 25 along which thetucker bar is'reciprocated'.

The folder `33 comprises a thin plate-likeleaf- 4|, best seen in Fig. 6,which extends horizontally away from the U member 35. At its inner" edgeMA the leaf is folded under. and outward. along and against itself, thetwo thicknesses being preferably integrated by soldering or brazingintofa double-thickness section 42, the. underlying portion being; thendownwardly and inwardly bent at 4|C.to form a guiding bight and the leafportion MDfcontinued inward parallel with the overlying portionstoestablish a throat 43.V The inner edge of the leaf portion. MD isupwardly curved at HEv concentrically around the edge 41A to form anarcuate throat 43A and is continued` outward at MF in overlying relationto the leaf 4I, continuing the throat 43A outward and establishing amajor throat portion 43B opening away from the U member 35, these throatportions forming a throat whichin cross section is substantiallyk aslender` J and folding.

and guiding the ruffle ed (Fig. 2). Rigid securementof the guidingportions of the folder to the clipportion 35, is effected along thecurved portion ME. Preferably the front, or. feed-in edges: of the.plate-like leaf portions. are, as shown in.

Fig. 5, thickened to effect stiffening.

Fore and aft. thev depth of the. folder is such that the front edge maylbe positioned forward of the tucker arm 2'3 and the rear edgesubstantially flushwiththe rear edges ofthe clip 35 and" support 3|, butthere terminates to avoid confinement. ofl the rutile d4' as itisgathered, andv avoid interference with., action ofi the tuckerb-ar 2|.The center section ll2,.and' thev overland underlyi'ng leaf. portions,41E andi 41D, howevenare provided with. rearward. tongue extensionsv42X, MX, lllY'respectively,,reducedin width to avoid interference. withthe tucker bar 2|, and the curved'l portion ME joining the leaves MF,HD` with a like extension ll'lZ,4 andV establishing an arcuate throatextension 43X ofthe arcuate throat 43A. This throat extension iscarried'rear- `ing part 39 which supports and carries the plate wardlyinto close adjacency with the outward end of the path of the tucker barend 2|A to provide guidance within and without of the inherently flimsyedge of the ruffle.

In Fig. 2, the dotted lines 5| indicate the positioning of the stitchingrelatively to the edges of the rue and body portions of the material iMand'2'9 respectively.

In using the folder, the cloth 29, Fig; 2, forming the body of thecurtain is fed in through a usual type of folder, not shown, which foldsthe edge-21 of the body upward and over on the body forming a narrowedge, which is drawn in a straightr line? toward' the needles |1, andlends itself' to easy guidance. At the same time the cloth-44forming/the ruflie is fed into the J-shaped l throat formed` by the slotportions 43, 43A, 43B

off the.v folder until engagement is secured with the edge 2|A of thetucker bar 2|, after which advancement is taken over by the bar. Inpassingl through. the. folder the. edge 44A of the. ruffle isfoldedunder and'againstther-uiile body to form a leafedrufeheading 44B,which, owing to the imsiness of the materiale-nd. thedepth of theheading, is extremely hardto-guide, and which additionally mustv begathered,v by. a tucker bar which is off-set away from the edgeoftheheading. Guidance. for. thisl heading is effected substantially tothepointofj tucker. bar engagement by thel central tongue extension42X`and thenarrow over and'. underlying` plate extensions MX.

andv 4"|.Y' andtheir. connecting arcuate. extension MZ;

Iclaim:

In a machine for attaching, rules, to a body member-,Whichmachineincludesa head', stitching means, a tucker plate, a tucker barspaced" at its outwardend' above said plate and converging inwardly anddownwardly toa gathering end proximate to said plate, and means forreciprocating said bar; a. folder and guide for flimsy ruiile material;-which said folder is ofV relatively much greater width than. said tuckerbar, and includes membersforming, a substantially J- shaped slot having;its longer leg open, and its shorter leg closed, disposed'b'elow saidbar, with thev bight. portion of said slot` extending, laterallytherebeyond, vsaid members being cutaway to provide a continuationo'fsaid laterally extending bight portion alongside sai'd bar, with the'open side of" said bight. facing? said'bar, into adj acency to the end'lof the path ofV inward movement of said bar, whereby to' guide thefolded edge of`

